


The Elephant's Balloon

by merriman



Category: Black Books
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-12-24
Updated: 2010-12-24
Packaged: 2017-10-14 02:17:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,006
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/144256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/merriman/pseuds/merriman
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>And they all drank lemonade, the end!</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Elephant's Balloon

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kiki-eng (kiki_eng)](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiki_eng/gifts).



> A treat with a bonus book review.

“Didn’t you have a children’s section once?” Fran asked Bernard as she leafed through a pile of magazines on his desk. He’d been meaning to throw them out for ages. They were pointless, really, full of inanity and book reviews. Who needed that rubbish anyhow? All it did was sit and gather dust and make for tinder when the heat went out. It didn’t make good paper for the loo, he’d found. Too shiny.

“I did,” he admitted, picking up one of the journals and looking at the brightly colored cover full of smiling children holding picture books. They looked far too happy. Like someone had just told them to smile or a puppy would get kicked. “It got covered in ice cream and ants and children and I had it removed.”

“Just as well,” she sighed, pausing to check out some of the reviews. “You know, I’ve never quite gotten children. They’re so...”

“Childish?” Bernard supplied, glancing up to look at her over the top of the magazine. Fran nodded.

“I dunno,” Manny said as he sat down at the end of the desk. “I quite liked having the books in here. It was nice to have them around for a change of pace. And the reading was fun. Aside from the worm costume.”

“Where is that costume?” Fran asked, looking around as if she expected to see it materialize out of thin air. It didn’t, but that didn’t mean it wasn’t lurking somewhere, in a corner or under a table.

“I sold it,” Bernard said, not looking up from the journal he was now engrossed in. The reviews were actually pretty good, and there was an article about how the author of the Tempocalypse books was writing a spin-off children’s series about kids averting the apocalypse while making sure to get their homework in on time. He’d have to be sure and not order any of them.

“Sold it? To whom?” Fran asked.

“Oh, this camper I found in the botany section. He thought it was a sleeping bag. Gave me twenty pounds for it and then I kicked him out.”

They all pondered that, then nodded and kept reading.

“Oh, would you look at this rubbish,” Fran said after a few more minutes. “This is ridiculous. The things they publish for children these days. Here, have a look at this.” She held up one journal, then set it in her lap again and read the review out loud.

 _ **The Elephant’s Balloon** \- 20 p. 2004 - Ages 3-6_

 _Much hype has been made over this book and the implications of its story and audience and indeed, it is a sophisticated tale hidden in a simplistic wrapper. An elephant, overjoyed at owning a bright blue balloon, must seek it out after it goes missing. Checking in with a rhino and an alligator proves fruitless and the balloon is only recovered after a monkey appears with it, ostensibly having stolen it right out of the elephant’s trunk. The ending, with the introduction of lemonade to the mix, might seem abrupt to some but in actuality it suits the story with a bittersweet tang. When reading this I could not help but consider it a metaphor for the pursuit of freedom. The elephant, representing both the reader and the general public, has in its possession an item that is at the same time lighter than air and weighed down with symbolism. The balloon, clearly meant to represent freedom of speech, is stolen away from the elephant and hidden in an inaccessible location. The rhino and the alligator are merely scapegoats here, appearing ferocious but truly only wanting to help the elephant. They too would like to have a balloon. Perhaps it is reading too much into it all, but there is a distinct feel of romance between the rhino and the elephant, unable to ever truly be together due to the repressive regime they are under with the loss of the balloon. The lush illustrations bring the world of these animals to life brilliantly, imbuing the alligator with a sort of careful dignity and the rhino with a sense of desperation. The elephant, and his search for his balloon, eventually meet the monkey, clearly a stand-in for Stalin. And then comes the lemonade, for they have recovered the balloon and thus their freedom, but at what cost? Reading this book I was transported away to both the streets and alleys of Omsk and the world of the animals, which I believe are one and the same. Don’t let the natural habitats of the animals pull you out of the story. Pay attention to it and you will find a rich tale of love and loss in post-Stalinist Russia and you will not be disappointed._

Fran slapped the journal closed and tossed it at the bin on the other side of Bernard’s desk.

“Utterly vile,” she sighed before pouring herself another glass of wine. “I mean, really. Can you imagine the sort of person who would write something like that? And what on earth sort of book would it be? A story about an elephant and a balloon and lemonade, but taking place in Omsk? Elephants don’t live in Omsk!”

Fran cackled and shook her head, oblivious to the other two at the desk. Bernard and Manny sat frozen for a moment, then glanced at each other, then away from each other. Then Bernard grabbed the bottle of wine and topped up his glass. Manny grabbed it after him and simply downed what was left.

“Yeah, I know,” Fran laughed as she watched them. “Some of the books you see today. They just drive you to drink, don’t they?”

She looked around for another bottle of booze. “Wine?” she asked them plaintively.

Manny set down the now empty bottle and got up. He was gone into the flat for a few minutes before returning with three pastel yellow bottles.

“Sorry,” he said, handing them around. “We’re completely out of wine. All we’ve got left is hard lemonade.”

The End!


End file.
